After decades of decline, General Electric has reversed a trend of layoffs and abandoned business ventures.

GE has created more than 1,600 private-sector jobs in the region in the last five years.

Much of the company's local growth is tied to the research at the Global Research site in Niskayuna.

GE has invested more than $400 million to expand its Albany-area footprint with its health care, battery and renewable energy businesses, instead of expanding in areas with cheaper labor.

These expansions not only secured nearly 7,000 jobs in the region, it fueled the relationship between GE research and manufacturing. The partnership allows for constant communication and innovation of the next generation of products.

The Albany Business Review took an in-depth look at the role that Albany, New York region's private-sector employers are playing in fueling the economy.Read this week's cover story here.

"The proximity puts us at a tremendous competitive advantage," said Mark Little, GE's global research director. "I don't know of any other company that has that going on as effectively as we do."

The research labs in Niskayuna support every part of GE's business from GE Capital to the Digital X-ray plant in North Greenbush. The company has a $5 billion technology research budget this year.

The same technology used to make CT scans at GE Healthcare can be used at GE Aviation to perform maintenance on aircraft carriers.

About half of GE's $400 million investment was in the GE Healthcare Digital X-ray manufacturing facility in North Greenbush. When the plant opened in 2009, about 50 of GE Research's employees transitioned to manufacturing. That number has grown to 135 employees today.

"We're not putting people on planes. If there is an issue or a question, the manufacturers can drive there [to the research lab in Niskayuna] in 30 minutes," said Tom Feist, general manager of the GE Healthcare digital X-ray lab. "We can work on the next generation of products and scale them up quickly without having to wait for customs or shipping."

That same idea went into GE Ventures, a program through which GE helps entrepreneurs and startups succeed by providing access to technology, technical expertise, capital and opportunities for commercialization.

Quirky, a social product development company headquartered in New York City, recognized the value of GE's married research and production model.

Quirky has partnered with GE to make the Aros smart air conditioner, a cooling unit consumers can control with their smartphones.

"We are expanding pretty rapidly and it's hard to expand rapidly in New York City," Kaufman said. "We were looking for a place that was affordable and within driving distance from New York City. We moved to Schenectady because it made sense for us."

Quirky's move to the region brought 180 jobs.

For years, labor and production costs have drained GE jobs, but it and a few other health care and financing companies have remained on the Business Review's List of Private-Sector Employers since the 1990s.

GE, which employed 14,700 in the region in 1989, employs about 7,000 today. Although that number has shrunk, GE remains a driver of the Capital Region's economy.

"GE changes. The world changes. GE was once a leader in engineering thermo plastics. It sold that business because GE and the model changed," Feist said. "There are areas where GE wants to focus more resources. It's usually on what will mean the most growth for the world."

Following the strategy that GE's CEO Jeff Immelt spelled out two years ago, GE remains a driver of the region's economy.

"Where you make things has more to do with where markets are, rather than a chase for cheaper labor. That is yesterday's strategy," Immelt said during a 2012 visit to Schenectady.

Krystle covers breaking news

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